CHAPTER TEN
ON EVEN GROUNDS
Syaoran glared instinctively at Eichiro. He didn't know why he suddenly felt annoyed by just the mere presence of him. He decided right then and there that he dislikes him. Period.
He glanced at Sakura and saw her frozen as solid as ice.
= It's so disgusting how obvious that she likes him! Does she ever know the word discreet? =
"Hey, Kinomoto? Some guy is trying to talk to you in case you haven't noticed it." Syaoran couldn't help but remark sarcastically.
As a response, Sakura automatically gave him a look which is identical to his frowning face. She couldn't help thinking that only if Eichiro isn't standing right that very minute in front of them, she would certainly give Syaoran some sarcastic reply of her own.
Trying to ignore her irritation towards Syaoran, she stood up and turned to face Eichiro with a smile.
"Konnichiwa, Ryusaki-san. I'm glad we finally get the chance to meet."
Eichiro smiled sheepishly at her. "Hmmm, yeah. Honestly, I never thought I'd actually get the chance to talk to you to say the least. I thought that if I approached you, I'd just end up stuttering or something."
Syaoran, who's leaning casually on his chair, fought the urge to roll his eyes upon hearing his last statement.
"Really? It doesn't look like you're stuttering right now, though."
= I wish I could have told him that line! Of course, I would say it sarcastically rather than saying it in a 'polite' manner, like what Sakura just did! = Syaoran couldn't help thinking while he tried his best to look like he is not interested on anything they are talking about.
"Well maybe it's because of the fact that you know how to make a person feel comfortable immediately at once. You're really nice and friendly and I'm glad I'm right about that one."
Sakura chuckled softly and tried to act casual. Obviously, Eichiro is wasting no time in trying to charm her. He is indeed charming to begin with, she must admit. His height, approximately 5'9", complemented his nice physique. And it doesn't hurt that he got a nice even tan on his body. His ash-blonde hair has just the right amount of waves in it which definitely framed his face in such a way that made his blue eyes appear somewhat more larger and expressive.
She must admit that he is handsome and she really is flattered by the fact that someone like him took notice of her. At least, Syaoran is not winning this bet that easily. She's finally catching up.
"By the way…" Eichiro paused as if to think of the words that he is going to say. "Are you free tomorrow evening?"
"I don't know. Why'd you ask?"
Of course, Sakura knows the reason why, it's just that, she like to hear him say that 'magic word' right infront of Syaoran's face.
"I'm hoping we could go out after work some place else so that we could get to know each other better. You could choose where you want to go if you want." He added as if to convince her.
"That's really nice of you! Hmmm, I think I may be available tomorrow night." She smiled.
Eichiro couldn't help but smile widely when he heard her reply.
"That's great! Really great! Arigatou Kinomoto-san. "
"No problem,"
"So it is settled then? I'll just fetch you here in your cubicle after work. Would that be okay with you?"
"That would be fine."
At the corner of her eyes, she saw Syaoran arranging some of his materials on one side of the table. She couldn't help wondering why he is still lingering at their workplace considering the fact that office hours ended about five minutes ago.
"Hey, are you going down already? I could go with you downstairs if you're already leaving." Eichiro offered.
"Hmm, I think I'll be doing some stuffs first. It may take a while so it would be better if you won't wait for me."
"Oh-! Okay, that wouldn't be a problem." He shrugged helplessly. "Arigatou again Kinomoto-san. And do take care. Ja ne!" He gave a curt nod before turning his back to her.
As she watched his retreating figure, she couldn't help but wonder at the back of her mind how's tomorrow's date would be. Would she actually enjoy it or not? Finally, after a few seconds of staring in mid-air, she decided to quit thinking and thought that she should just enjoy the date and not be concerned about it anymore.
"You like him, don't you?"
Sakura almost jump in surprise when she heard Syaoran's voice. She forgot at that instant that he was even there.
"What do you mean 'I like him'?"
Syaoran stood up from his chair and faced her with a look of arrogance in his face.
"Oh pleaseee, the way you gawked at him, it's too obvious!" He rolled his eyes. "Although it's really funny cause I finally saw the way you act when you're around with someone that you like. Because considering the way you treat me and the way you treat him which you just happened to meet a few minutes ago, it's really different. Waaaaayy to different."
"If I didn't know any better I'd say you are being sarcastic."
"Ha! What for?" He placed his arms evenly across his chest. "As if I care."
She raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, yes you do care. "
"I don't."
"Yes you do." Sakura smiled slightly. "If you weren't you would've already been out of this office the very minute our work ended. Besides, you're hanging around here with nothing left for you to do anymore since you're already in the field all day! Obviously, you are listening to every little word that we've said. Am I right or am I right?"
He stared at her in disbelief. Yes, he must admit that he is indeed listening to every little word that they've said. He knows he shouldn't be listening to them and that he should just leave the two of them talking in private but he just couldn't help his self from doing it anyway.
"You're so obnoxious, you know? Fine! I admit I've been listening to every little word that you've both said. Happy now? In case you haven't remember, we're on a bet and the reason why I'm still here is because I just wanted to know if that guy would actually ask you out. "
"And I'm afraid we're both tied again I suppose…" She said in a gleeful tone.
"That's what you think. But it's going to be not for long."
"You know what? I just realized something."
"What's that?"
Sakura looked at him straight in his eyes.
"You're one sour loser."
"What are you talking about? I'm not losing. Definitely not. You just said that we're tied. Even scores doesn't make anyone a winner."
"Oh my fault!" She mocked a look of shame on her face. "What I meant to say is, you're definitely going to be one sour loser. Cause just right now, you couldn't accept the fact that I'm catching up with you. I mean, look at me. When you dated that—that—girl, I never looked or felt affected by it!"
= Who are you trying to kid? You are really affected by IT!= A small voice in her head suddenly came up from nowhere.
"Are you saying that I am actually affected by the fact that some wanna-be cool dude asked you out for a date? Sorry but No, I'm not intimidated in any way by him." He frowned. "Don't be too overly confident, Kinomoto."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura and Eichiro are walking along the bricked road that lined up the town's park, appreciating the sights around them. When she told Eichiro earlier at the office that she wanted to go to the park for their first date, he really seemed surprised by it. He told her that most women he dated usually wanted to go to the mall to watch some movies or eat in a restaurant for their first date, but she is the only girl he ever dated who suggested that they go and date in a park.
"The park is really beautiful! I never thought that this would be a really great place for a first date." Eichiro remarked enthusiastically. "Do you know that there'll be some festivities being held in the park today?"
"Honestly, I have no idea." She grinned. "I just wanted to see the park because of the fact that I haven't visited this place yet. I don't want to go back to Tomoeda without even placing a foot in this park!"
Sakura looked around and saw lots of people casually strolling at the park even at night. The colorful lights and the decorations around them suggested that a festival is indeed being held at that park. No wonder why so many people are at the park!
"You know what? I still haven't able to visit this place too you know. I'm from Okinawa and I guess it would also be a shame if I returned back home and told my friends that I haven't even visited the town's park!"
"See? You understand what I meant when I told you earlier that spending our time in a park would be better than watching some flicks in the cinema."
"Yeah. And if weren't for your idea, we probably wouldn't have been enjoying ourselves as much as we did right now if we weren't here." He smiled. "I just wish we know what the celebration is all about."
"I wish I had known, too. Maybe they are celebrating the park's anniversary." Sakura saw a look of amusement in Eichiro's face, looking at her as if he didn't believe her. "I mean, you know, maybe to recognize the day it is first established or something. Stuffs like that…"
"I suppose you are right." A familiar voice answered from behind them.
Immediately, Sakura and Eichiro turned around to see who is the person that interrupted their conversation.
A look of shock registered in Sakura's face when she recognized the person who spoke.
"What on earth are you doing here, Li?"
Syaoran looked back at her innocently.
"I'm waiting for my date. We're supposed to meet in this fountain but it just so happens that I'm exactly—" He paused to glanced at his watch. "Twenty three minutes earlier for our date."
"What a coincidence that you're here!" She said in sarcasm.
"Now that you mentioned it, it IS certainly a coincidence."
Funny but Sakura has this feeling that their meeting at the park is not by mere coincidence. Maybe Syaoran overheard them again when she told Eichiro that she wanted to go to the park. But she made sure that they are talking away from their cubicle when he told him that. How in the world could he have heard them?
"Hey, isn't he your partner or something at work?" Eichiro remarked.
"No. He's definitely not my partner." Sakura answered immediately. A 'partner' is someone you could easily get along with and work with efficiently. And certainly, their relationship is not anywhere close to that definition.
"I'm the 'or something' part." Syaoran added helpfully.
She decided to ignore his comment.
"Anyway, Li Syaoran this is Ryusaki Eichiro. Ryusaki-san, meet Li."
A short handshake between the two followed right after that.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Syaoran said afterwards.
Eichiro shook his head and smiled. "No, its fine. Isn't it, Kinomoto-san?"
Sakura tried to smile sweetly.
"No, Li. You're not interrupting anything. "
"That's great! I certainly don't want to make you two feel uncomfortable with having me around here." He chuckled. "So are you guys here for the celebration too?"
"Oh yeah! Kinomoto-san and I are talking about it just a while ago. You have any idea what the celebration is all about anyway?"
Syaoran nodded.
"Yes, I do. It's the park's 60th anniversary. They are celebrating the year it was first created. You see the stage in the center? There'll be a free concert a little later here."
"That's neat." Eichiro agreed. "Who's going to perform?"
"Gomen nasai but I don't have any idea on that one."
Rrrrrriiiiiiiing!!!!!!!!!!
Eichiro suddenly jumped in surprise when he heard the loud ringing of his cell phone. He dug in his pocket to reach for his phone.
"Excuse me." He said first before answering the call. Eichiro walked a few distance away from them so he could hear the other person on the line.
Sakura and Syaoran were left together. Sakura decided to keep silent, she couldn't think of anything to say to him anyway.
"Hey, you look like you've got some problem. Are you okay?" Syaoran suddenly asked her which caught her in surprise. He actually sounded like he's concerned about her.
If only she could tell him that how she wished he was never at the park with them right that very minute. She feels that with Syaoran around, being with Eichiro makes her feel uncomfortable. And she doesn't know why.
"I'm fine." She answered in a chirped voice instead.
Syaoran was about to say something but Eichiro already returned.
"Hey, Kinomoto-san? Hmmm, I've got a little bit of a problem…" Eichiro started to say, a look of uneasiness on his face.
"What is it?" She asked him curiously.
"Ano…that's our babysitter. She's babysitting for my niece who's about seven years old." He coughed uncomfortably. "I'm afraid I have to go since my niece seems to be coming up with a high fever and I'm afraid that I suppose to go back home and take care of her. Her parents are out of the town you see and…"
Sakura nodded and smiled gently.
"I understand. Sure, you may go now. I'll be fine."
"Maybe I should take you home first."
"No, that won't be necessary. You're niece needs you as soon as possible. Besides, if you take me home, that would be out of your way. "
"But…" Eichiro protested.
"Don't worry I could go home by myself."
"Are you really sure about that?"
"Hey man, don't worry. I'll make sure that she gets home safely."
A hint of surprise made its way to Sakura's face when she heard him.
"Really that would be great, Li. Thanks." Eichiro looked at Sakura apologetically. "Gomen nasai. Promise, I'll make it up to you."
"Nah. Don't be too hard on yourself. It's okay."
"Well, I guess I'll be going now." A trace of disappointment could be heard in his voice. "Gomen nasai again Kinomoto-san. I'll be seeing you guys tomorrow."
Syaoran nodded.
"Ja ne! Tell your niece to get well soon." Sakura said to Eichiro before he went back to his place.
"I guess, I must be going now, too." Sakura said just a few minutes after Eichiro disappeared. "My date's already gone so there's no reason for me to be here."
"Don't you want to hang for a while here? I mean, it's still early." Syaoran offered to her, a smile playing at the corner of his mouth.
"No, thanks."
"Don't you even want to take a look around the park?"
"We've already walked around it, thank you very much." She sighed. What is Syaoran up to anyway? He looks like he certainly is not concerned whether his own date is coming at the park anytime soon.
"Don't you want to listen to the concert? After a hard day's work, listening to a good music is certainly going to be relaxing don't you think so?"
"It's no fun watching a concert when you're alone, you know."
"Who say's you're alone?" Syaoran looked at her as if she lost her mind or something. "I'm here to accompany you."
"Don't be silly, Li. You've got a date. I certainly don't want to be a 'tag along' with the two of you."
"I could cancel the date."
Sakura looked at her incredulously.
"What on earth is going through your mind? You can't just do that to your date!"
"But I promised Ryusaki I'd take you home. Let me do that at least to you."
"And make your date wait for you?" She shook her head vigorously. "No, I won't let you. I can go home by myself."
Syaoran slapped his forehead slightly in annoyance.
"Don't be so stubborn! I told him I'd take you home so I'll do it!" He said in irritation. "And stop worrying about my date, I told you: She'd understand. Why can't you comprehend that?"
Sakura smirked. She didn't know why she refuses to let Syaoran take her home. In fact, she actually abhors that idea. Maybe because Syaoran is only doing it just for the fact that it is his obligation to do so? She certainly doesn't want to make him feel like that. If he is just forced to take her home, then he just shouldn't do it.
"I'm going home. You stay here and wait for your date."
Syaoran's eyed grew large when he heard her reply. And he thought she already understood him!
"Stop acting like that. You're making simple things complicated you know that?"
"I certainly don't want you to blame me if your date will be a disaster because of you taking me home. You'd be three points by now as compared the two points I've had!" She rolled her eyes.
"So is that the reason why you wouldn't let me accompany you? Fine. So as to make you feel less guilty, even if my date stood me up or not, this date won't be accounted for in our bet. The score's still tied whatever happens tonight." Syaoran snapped back. "Now just shut up and let me take you home."
And with that, Syaoran took a firm grasp of her wrist and pulled her gently along, intent on taking her home safely once and for all.
~~~~~~~~~
kotsch
A/N: Gomen nasai for not uploading any chaps of this fic and my other fic as well. Honestly I'm having trouble writing right now and I felt like I lost some of my touch with regards to writing that's why I stopped doing it for now. However, some of you guys actually took some time off to write me e-mail and tell me to continue so I've decided to release a new chap of this fic. This may be short so gomen nasai if this won't turn out good at all. ^__^;;;
P.S. Gomen nasai again If I wasn't able to e-mail people regarding the update of this fic. Too busy as always!